Purpose and pleasure

Jon has had a couple of busy days as his son and daughter-in-law have been here for a long weekend. I wouldn’t say that Jon was suddenly capable of astounding feats of physical fitness, but he certainly did better than I had expected. He is still battling with his sciatica (and of course the PD means he can’t physically do the sort of exercises that might help), but nevertheless traipsed around with us through a museum and several city centres and even over choice selections of nature. He also got up earlier and stayed awake later at night. Okay, it all cost him a few extra pills here and there, but he enjoyed himself. That doesn’t happen often enough in my book, and it is just great when it does.

It’s that whole issue which we have both written about before and will, I am sure, write about again: what is the purpose of getting up in the morning, and given the restrictions imposed by PD: what would be a pleasant way to spend the day. These are not easy questions on most days – but become quite obvious in the vicinity of children or grandchildren. Beyond that, there is still no answer.

I am happy to report, though, that Jon has stopped mainlining The West Wing. He made it to the end of the seventh season in record time and is now ambling through the earlier seasons at my rather less obsessive pace. No other TV-based addiction has taken its place, and good weather plus a recent book delivery from Amazon may well keep him unplugged for a bit. He also claims to have worked – in his newly uncluttered study – on the legendary book he is writing. Slow going, but so long as it moves forward there is hope.

Other people we know with chronic diseases, whether the sort that stops you working or ‘just’ the sort that permanently rearranges your hopes and dreams, say this is the hardest thing, To accept the disease, to come to terms with the limitations it imposes, and to find a way to still enjoy the life that is possible. It’s a work in progress.